About Us

The Lovell Telescope

Lovell Telescope
The 76-m Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank
Credit: A.Holloway, University of Manchester

For over 50 years the giant Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank has been a familiar feature of the Cheshire landscape and an internationally renowned landmark in the world of astronomy.

Since the summer of 1957 it has been quietly probing the depths of space, a symbol of our wish to understand the universe in which we live. Even now, it remains one of the biggest and most powerful radio telescopes in the world, spending most of its time investigating cosmic phenomena which were undreamed of when it was conceived.

These pages describe how the telescope was built, how it works, and some of the exciting projects in which it has been engaged.

At the Visitor Centre, you can walk half way around the telescope, and view the telescope from many angles, on our Observational Pathway. You can also find out more about the telescope, and the history of Jodrell Bank, on a series of information boards around the Pathway.